Basidiobolus ranarum

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Basidiobolus ranarum is a zygomycete Fungus that is a rare cause of human infection (called basidiobolomycosis).

1 Clinical features
2 Diagnosis
3 Treatment
4 References

[edit] Clinical features

Basidiobolomycosis is usually a superficial infection of skin, but may very rarely cause lesions of the bowel or liver, mimicking bowel cancer,^[1] or Crohn's disease.^[2] In patients with deep involvement, the eosinophil count may be raised, falsely suggesting a parasitic infection.

[edit] Diagnosis

Diagnosis is by laboratory culture of the organism, usually from pieces of tissue taken from the patient. It grows easily on most media, but risks being discarded as irrelevant or being reported as a contaminant because laboratory staff are unfamiliar with it.

Diagnosis is often difficult because it is a rare disease and therefore often not recognised. The lesions often look like tumours rather than infection, so often no sample is sent for microbiology, however, the histopathology is characteristic: the Splendore-Hoeppli phenomenon describes the presence of fungal hyphae (which may exist only as ghosts on the slide) surrounded by eosinophilic material.

[edit] Treatment

Treatment for skin lesions are traditionally with potassium iodide,^[3] but itraconazole has also been used successfully.^[4]^[5]

[edit] References

^ Van den berk GEL, Noorduyn LA, van Ketel RJ, et al. (2006). "A fatal pseudo-tumour: disseminated basidiobolomycosis". BMC Infect Dis 6: 140. DOI:10.1186/1471-2334-6-140.
^ Zavasky DM, Samowitz W, Loftus T, Segal H, Carroll K (1999). "Gastrointestinal zygomycotic infection caused by Basidiobolus ranarum: case report and review". Clin Infect Dis 28 (6): 1244–8.
^ Nazir Z, Hasan R, Pervaiz S, Alam M, Moazam F. (1997). "Invasive retroperitoneal infection due to Basidiobolus ranarum with response to potassium iodide—case report and review of the literature". Ann Trop Paediatr 17 (2): 161–4. PMID 9230980.
^ Yusuf NW, Assaf HM, Rotowa N (2003). "Invasive gastrointestinal Basidiobolus ranarum infection in an immunocompetent child (brief report)". Ped Infect Dis J 22 (3): 281–82.
^ Mathew RM, Kumaravel S, Kuruvilla S, et al. (2005). "Successful treatment of extensive basidiobolomycosis with oral itraconazole in a child". Int J Dermatol 44 (7): 572–75.

Infectious diseases are diseases caused by biological agents, which can be transmitted to others, rather than by genetic, physical or chemical agents. This definition includes disease caused by viruses, bacteria, parasites, fungi and prions. This page will include infectious diseases as pertains to humans. Those affecting animals will be listed under Veterinary medicine.